Engine: 4cylinder 1090 cc designed by Coatalen. Overhead valves, coil ignition as standard, a Magneto was £5 extra. 3 forward gears and reverse. 2 wheel brakes, 4 brake shoes per drum. Tyre size 710x90 beaded edge. Top speed about 50mph. Saloon body. This was equipped with Bedford cord cloth upholstery. Price new £495.00
This very pretty “town” car is one of only two known surviving saloons. Very little history is known of this car since 1926 when it lived in West Bromwich. Purchased by the present owner in 1964 from a small garage in Shropshire, in very poor condition but drivable. It was then restored over the next 19 years. Using as much of the interior fabrics as possible, the original head lining became the door lining, the embroidered window pulls had some repairs and were able to stay in use, as was the hat net. The car was originally 6 volt, changed to 12 volt to accommodate better lighting. The tyres were changed to 400x19. ‘Clementine’ has been used regularly and she was driven to Classic Le Mans in 2006 with no problems. Several years ago I was contacted by the previous owner who sold the car at auction for £75.
Email to the Club, I would appreciate knowing if this car is still alive and well. When I was 20 years old in 1964, living in Kidderminster, and courting my future wife, I could not afford to buy a modern second hand car, so decided to work backwards, then came across this 1923 10/23 Talbot reg. XP 8596 I think!. I bought it from someone in Bewdley, and had the choice between the Talbot and a 1925 very large Vauxhall. I decided on the Talbot, because it needed an already made half shaft to be fitted and it also came with a set of new pistons. The price for either car was £10-00-0d. Having fitted the half shaft, the car was in running order - no MOT in those days - so I started to drive it locally, longer journeys and high speeds - above 30 mph became a problem for some reason, it boiled!!. Unfortunately my mother and father moved in 1965 to a smaller house, and so the Talbot was sold at Kidderminster Car Auctions run by local estate agents, Phipps and Pritchard. It fetched £77-10-0d, so I became a very rich man, seeing that I was only earning £6-10-0d per week. I think it was bought by a dealer in Craven Arms or Bishops Castle. A sad day to see her go - I wonder where she is, or if she is still alive? Regards, Peter Bazley.
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